Yes — most renters can switch retailer
There is a stubborn myth that renters are stuck with whatever energy retailer the landlord or agent chose. In most cases that is simply not true. If the electricity account is in your name and you pay the retailer directly, you are the customer — and you have exactly the same right to compare and switch as any homeowner. You do not need the landlord's permission to change retailer, because you are not changing anything physical about the property, just who bills you for the power.
The account being in your name is the key test. When you move into a standard rental, the connection is usually put into your name from the day your lease starts, and that first retailer is often just whoever the previous occupant used or a default the agent nominated. That default is rarely the cheapest offer available, which means a five-minute comparison can put real money back in your pocket for the rest of your tenancy.
The important exception is an embedded network — common in apartment blocks, retirement villages and caravan parks — where the building buys power in bulk and on-sells it to residents. In that setup you may not be able to choose your retailer. We cover how to check, and your rights, in the embedded networks article.
What you can change, and what you can't
- Your retailer and plan
- You can change these freely if the account is in your name and you are not in an embedded network. This is where the savings are.
- Standby and appliance habits
- Fully in your control — switching off at the wall, using cold washes and running heavy loads off-peak on a time-of-use plan.
- Portable and plug-in efficiency
- You can bring efficient portable heaters, LED bulbs and draught stoppers with you and take them when you leave.
- The meter and wiring
- You cannot change these — they belong to the property. A meter upgrade (for example to a smart meter) usually needs the owner's consent.
- Fixed appliances and hot water
- The hot water system, oven, ducted heating and any solar belong to the landlord. You can ask for upgrades but cannot install them yourself.
Low-cost wins that work in any rental
- Confirm the account is in your name (check a bill) — if it is, you can compare and switch today.
- Compare on your real usage, not a headline rate: upload a recent bill so the comparison reflects how you actually use power rather than a marketing figure.
- Kill standby loads: a single switched powerboard for the TV, console and chargers stops them drawing power around the clock.
- Wash cold and dry on the line where you can — heating water is one of the biggest hidden costs in a bill.
- Draught-proof cheaply with door snakes and removable seals, so heating and cooling are not leaking straight outside.
- If you have a time-of-use meter, shift the dishwasher, washing machine and any pool pump into the off-peak window.
Why comparing on real usage matters more for renters
Renters often live in smaller dwellings and use less power than a large family home, which makes the fixed daily supply charge a bigger slice of the total bill. A plan with a slightly cheaper usage rate but a fat supply charge can easily cost a light user more than a plan advertised as "more expensive". Headline-rate comparisons miss this completely.
EnergySorted costs every plan on the whole of the market against your actual usage — supply charge, usage rates and any solar feed-in — for a flat annual fee of around $39 and takes no commissions from retailers. Because it is paid by you rather than the retailers, the ranking is built to find your genuine cheapest plan rather than the one that pays the biggest referral. For a renter who may move every year or two, that unbiased whole-of-market view is worth far more than a one-off "we'll switch you" call from a commission-based service.